We're Back From Hawaii

Our vacation has come to an end... :( Hawaii was awesome! After now having been to two different Islands, I can say that the Big Island is WAY better than Oahu (honolulu). The Big Island is almost like being on the moon. The entire island is made from lava and for miles and miles its all you can see. There are tons of miles where no one lives and nothing grows...just lava. It's not nearly as crowded as Honolulu and there's so many things to see and do. You know how you see pictures of the ocean and you say "there's no way the water is THAT blue"? Well, it is!


We went on a volcano tour and got to see many cool things. Unfortunately there was no lava flowing (we missed it by about 2 weeks!), but it was still awesome nonetheless. Aside from TONS of lava, we saw canyon-like craters, we saw hot smoke rising from holes in the ground, we saw caves created by lava and got to walk into them.


Other than the lava tour, we went snorkeling, parasailing, horseback riding, toured some coffee plantations, the boys played golf (on an AMAZAING course might I add...), went to a luau, and ate at some great restaurants.


Our hotel/resort was incredible. It was huge and so open. There was a giant pool in the back and just behind the pool was the ocean. They had a man-made beach and a lagoon. They also had a "sea turtle resting area" where the sea turtles would just come and hang out. That was really neat.


Probably the best part of this trip was that it was practially free! :) Matt and I calculated that we probably only spent $300 the entire time we were there. His boss paid for the flight, the hotel (which I think was $400 a night), all the activities, and breakfast and dinner every day as well as some lunches. All we had to buy was souveniers, a couple meals, and tips.


Of course, I got TONS of pictures. I'll include a few of my favorites!